The Island Highway is actually a series of highways that follows much of the eastern coastline of Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island

Vancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...

, British Columbia

British Columbia

British Columbia is the westernmost of Canada's provinces and is known for its natural beauty, as reflected in its Latin motto, Splendor sine occasu . Its name was chosen by Queen Victoria in 1858...

, Canada

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

.

While the Island Highway has no officially designated starting point, it is understood to begin at the BC Ferries

BC Ferries

British Columbia Ferry Services Inc. or BC Ferries is a de facto Crown Corporation that provides all major passenger and vehicle ferry services for coastal and island communities in the Canadian province of British Columbia...

 dock in Port Hardy

Port Hardy, British Columbia

Port Hardy is a district municipality in British Columbia, Canada located on the north-eastern coast of Vancouver Island. Port Hardy has a population of 3822 at last census...

 as Highway 19. The highway continues southbound as Highway 19 until it reaches the northern end of Campbell River

Campbell River, British Columbia

Campbell River is a coastal city in British Columbia on the east coast of Vancouver Island at the south end of Discovery Passage, which lies along the important coastal Inside Passage shipping route...

, at the intersection of Highway 19 and Highway 19A. At this point, Highway 19A becomes the Island Highway, and runs south through Courtenay

Courtenay, British Columbia

Courtenay is a city on the east coast of Vancouver Island, in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is the largest city in the area commonly known as the Comox Valley, and it is the seat of the Comox Valley Regional District which replaced the Comox-Strathcona Regional District...

, Union Bay

Union Bay, British Columbia

Union Bay in British Columbia, Canada is a small community approximately 15 kilometres south of Courtenay, British Columbia, the largest city in the Comox Valley. Union Bay is populated by about 1200 people and is an unincorporated site within the Comox Valley Regional District...

, Fanny Bay

Fanny Bay, British Columbia

Fanny Bay is a small hamlet in the Canadian province of British Columbia. It is located on Baynes Sound on the east coast of Vancouver Island. In 2001, its population was listed as 744...

, and Qualicum Beach

Qualicum Beach, British Columbia

Qualicum Beach is a town in the Regional District of Nanaimo, British Columbia, Canada. As of the 2006 census, the town had 8,502 people.On the Strait of Georgia on the north-eastern coast of Vancouver Island in the shadow of Mount Arrowsmith, the community has been a popular tourist destination,...

 until it reaches Parksville

Parksville, British Columbia

-Demographics:Parksville had a population of 10,993 people in 2006, which was an increase of 6.5% from the 2001 census count. The median household income in 2006 for Parksville was $55,524, which is below the British Columbia provincial average of $62,346....

 (this section of the highway is often referred to as the Oceanside Route).

At the southern tip of Parksville, the Island Highway rejoins Highway 19 and continues south to Nanaimo

Nanaimo, British Columbia

Nanaimo is a city on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It has been dubbed the "Bathtub Racing Capital of the World" and "Harbour City". Nanaimo is also sometimes referred to as the "Hub City" because of its central location on Vancouver Island and due to the layout of the downtown...

, where it meets Highway 1, the Trans-Canada Highway

Trans-Canada Highway

The Trans-Canada Highway is a federal-provincial highway system that joins the ten provinces of Canada. It is, along with the Trans-Siberian Highway and Australia's Highway 1, one of the world's longest national highways, with the main route spanning 8,030 km...

. The highway continues through Ladysmith

Ladysmith, British Columbia

Ladysmith is a town located on the 49th parallel on the east coast of Vancouver Island British Columbia, Canada. The local economy is based on forestry, tourism and agriculture. A hillside location adjacent to a sheltered harbour form the natural characteristics of the community., the population...

, Duncan

Duncan, British Columbia

Duncan is a city on southern Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada.-History:The community is named after William Chalmers Duncan . He arrived in Victoria in May 1862, then in August of that year he was one of the party of a hundred settlers which Governor Douglas took to Cowichan Bay...

, and several other communities before manoeuvring through the Malahat

Malahat, British Columbia

Malahat or The Malahat refers to a First Nations people and the unincorporated locality, highway, and passenger train named after them on southern Vancouver Island...

 district.

Although the Trans-Canada Highway remains the Island Highway south to Victoria, the name is rarely applied to it there. Rather the Island Highway is the name given to the old highway and particularly a piece of Highway 1A from Goldstream Avenue at Colwood Corner to Admirals Road.